Shadows of the dead: why the ex-leader of the "Mogilev" organized crime group was given 10 years in prison

The St. Petersburg City Court has sentenced former sports functionary Vladimir Kulibaba to ten years in a general regime penal colony in a 30-year-old double murder case. His victims were Igor Savin, a member of the once famous Mogilev organized crime group, and Kirill Ugolnikov, a police officer, who were shot in the street in 1993. In February 2025, the jury found Kulibaba guilty of organizing this murder, as well as of participating in and leading the "Mogilev" gang. Two alleged accomplices of the crime, Vladimir Karpinsky and Anatoly Motyl, were acquitted by the court. How Kulibaba reacted to the verdict, and why another case was opened against him, is in the Izvestia article.

What was Vladimir Kulibaba convicted for?

Former sports functionary Vladimir Kulibaba will spend the next ten years in a penal colony. On March 17, he was sentenced to this term by the St. Petersburg City Court. Law enforcement agencies consider him to be one of the leaders of the once famous St. Petersburg "Mogilev" organized crime group.

This gang was initially led by the well-known criminal boss Kostya "Grave" (Konstantin Yakovlev). She operated in St. Petersburg in the 1990s and 2000s. According to investigators, Vladimir Kulibaba was Yakovlev's "right-hand man," and in 1993, on his instructions, organized the murder of Igor Savin ("Sledgehammer"), a member of the same group, with whom the gang did not share a shipment of stolen vodka.

Savin was shot in St. Petersburg on Frunze Street on August 16, 1993. At that moment, police officer Kirill Ugolnikov, who worked as a security guard for him, was in the car with him. His criminals did not plan to kill him, he became an accidental victim — he died from numerous wounds. At that moment, another of Savin's guards, Dmitry Skvortsov, was in the car. He managed to escape.

Kulibaba was detained in December 2021 and charged with the murder of Savin and Ugolnikov, the attempted murder of Skvortsov, as well as leading a "Mogilev" gang. The investigation believes that after Kostya Graves was killed in 2003, Kulibaba took his place and led the group.

At the same time, he made a notable career as a sports official: since 2007, he was president of the St. Petersburg Freestyle Wrestling Federation, and before that, he served as vice president of this organization for six years. He was also an assistant to the Chairman of the Russian Olympic Committee, vice-president of the National Security Academy, founder of the trade union Profsport and the Orlyonok Sports Club.

The investigation believed that Kulibaba was the organizer of Savin's murder, Vladimir Karpinsky, a member of the same group, was the direct perpetrator, and Anatoly Motyl was the driver. As a result, all three were brought to court.

Why were Kulibaba's alleged accomplices acquitted

In November 2010, Kulibaba was brought to criminal responsibility on charges of murdering Vadim Chechel, director of the Cascade security company, which happened in 2008. Then he managed to escape punishment: the jury found him innocent.

But this time, the jury found Kulibaba's guilt proven, as did the guilt of Motyl, who, according to the verdict, deserved leniency. The jury found Karpinsky guilty only of participating in an organized criminal group, but the case in this part was dismissed due to the expiration of the statute of limitations.

In a rare case, even the prosecutor asked for Karpinsky's acquittal. As a result, the court agreed with the jury and the prosecutor's office, fully acquitted Vladimir Karpinsky, and recognized his right to rehabilitation. According to the Investigative Committee of St. Petersburg, the real perpetrator of the murder was Marat Aristov, who is now on the federal wanted list.

"I thank the court for releasing me,— Vladimir Karpinsky said after the acquittal.

But the surprises did not end there — the second alleged accomplice of Kulibaba, the driver Anatoly Motyl, was also fully acquitted by the court. And he did it contrary to the verdict of the jury.

Earlier, Motyl assured investigators that he did not know that he was taking Kulibaba to the murder scene and that he was actually using him in the dark. According to Motyl, he "heard gunshots and got scared." During the investigation, he described in detail everything that happened that day in 1993 at Savin's house and asked to be acquitted.

Neither the jury nor the prosecutor found him innocent — the prosecution requested seven years of probation for him. But the court did not agree with the opinion of the parties and made its decision.

Will the acquittals stand

A guilty verdict by the jury does not prevent an acquittal if the court finds that the defendant's act does not contain signs of a crime, Alexey Gavrishev, head of AVG Legal, explained to Izvestia.

"The court is still a more qualified participant in the process than the jury,— the lawyer said. — Therefore, a deviation from the verdict towards its mitigation is permissible in the verdict. But not the other way around.

Acquittals are quite rare in judicial practice and are often overturned in higher instances according to the prosecutor's office, Alexey Gavrishev noted.

— So it's not a fact that the end of the case has been reached, — said the lawyer.

On average, the number of acquittals in cases involving jurors ranges from 20-30%, Ilya Drozdov noted. According to him, this cannot be compared with the rates of reviewing cases without their participation — only 0.1-0.2%.

— That is why many defendants want their case to be considered with the participation of a jury, — said the lawyer.

The acquitted defendants have the right to expect compensation for property costs and moral damage, the amount of which is not fixed — it is determined by the court.

What else is Kulibaba accused of?

If the criminal prosecution has ended for Vladimir Karpinsky and Anatoly Motyl, then everything will continue for Vladimir Kulibaba, lawyers interviewed by Izvestia believe. The term to which the court sentenced him in the Savin murder case may not be final.

In February 2025, investigators charged Kulibaba with organizing another murder committed exactly 30 years ago, in March 1995. We are talking about the elimination of Alexander Bobrov, a member of the Mogilev gang. According to investigators, Kulibaba organized Bobrov's murder — he found the killer and paid him $ 2,000.

Both charges were brought against Kulibaba under the Criminal Code of the RSFSR, which was in force at the time of the crimes. He pleaded not guilty to any of them.

Before sentencing, Vladimir Kulibaba stated in his last statement that he expected the court to acquit him:

— Your Honor, it's up to you to make a decision as the chairman and as a person, but for the lightness of your heart, let's end this mess. Moreover, I will face further charges in the future.

Kulibaba came to the verdict in a white shirt with a black bow tie. The prosecutor asked for 14 years in prison for him, but the court gave him ten. The defense asked to acquit him.

Marina Belinskaya, Vladimir Kulibaba's lawyer, told Izvestia that after the acquittal of two of his alleged accomplices, it became even more unclear how the court saw the realization of the crime Kulibaba was accused of.

— I do not agree with the verdict, from my point of view, it is devoid of any reasonableness, — said the lawyer. — Because today there are not only no shooters and weapons, but also a man who was an accomplice of Kulibaba. We will appeal the verdict.

Each of the defendants is responsible to the court individually, Ilya Drozdov, a lawyer at the Moscow bar association Union of Lawyers, explained in a conversation with Izvestia.

"The acquittal of one or more defendants does not mean the acquittal of all the others," he said.

Kulibaba's second lawyer, Yuri Novolodsky, in an interview with Izvestia, expressed confidence that his client would be acquitted on appeal.